Process and machinery for making paper sticks



July 1, 1969 Y J. w. COBB 3,452,650

I PROCESS AND MACHINERY FOR MAKING PAPER STICKS Filed Feb. 1'7, 1966Sheet 1 of e L 9 z I w 3 CE L) 5 g g; 0

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FIG.1

FIG.3

INVENTOR JAMES W. COBB BY pmfi mm TTORNE 7 July 1, 1969 J. w. COBB3,452,650

PROCESS AND MACHINERY FOR MAKING PAPER STICKS Filed Feb. 17, 1966 Sheetg ,of 6

INVENTOR J AMES W. COBB ATTORNE J. w. COBB 3,452,650

July 1, 1969 PROCESS AND MACHINERY FOR MAKING PAPER STICKS Sheet FiledFeb. 17, 1966 "mun INVENTOR ATTORNEY J. W. COBB PROCESS AND MACHINERYFOR MAKING PAPER STICKS Filed Feb. 17, 1966 FIG-8 ,LJS

INVENTOR JAMES W- COBB BY 44 22, .4 I 1m 5 July 1, 1969 J. w. coBB'3,452,650

PROCESS AND MACHINERY FOR MAKING PAPER STICKS Filed Feb. 17, 1966 Sheet5 of 6 INVENTOR E JAMES W COBB ATTORN Jul 1,19.69 J,W OBB 3,452,550

PROCESS AND MACHINERY FOR MAKING PAPER STICKS Filed Feb. 1'7, 1966 Sheet6 of s Wu 8 N 8 INVENTO JAME S W. C

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,452,650 PROCESS AND MACHINERY FOR MAKINGPAPER STICKS James W. Cobb, Tarrytown, N.Y., assignor to AEL Developmentand Research, Inc., Norwalk, Conn., a corporation of New York Filed Feb.17, 1966, Ser. No. 538,124 Int. Cl. B31c 11/04; B31f 7/00; B31d 5/00 US.Cl. 93-1 19 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Process and machinery formaking paper sticks by tightly rolling and compacting sections of apaper web by pre-forming each section into a loosely curled roll,applying opposed, resilient, high friction surfaces against oppositesides of the rolls, moving these surfaces relative to each other anddecreasing the spacing between them to form long paper rods which arecut into a multiplicity of sticks. The drum and shell frame structuredisposed around the drum are each coated on their opposed surfaces witha resilient, tough, rubber-like layer. In the machinery as shown thesticks are dried by high frequency alternating voltage and are packaged.

This invention relates to a process and machinery for making papersticks by tightly rolling and compacting sections of a paper web and forautomatically packing large numbers of the sticks in adjacent parallelrelationship in cartons in readiness for shipment and for dispensingthem.

Paper sticks are being used increasingly for holding cotton swabs orappliactors, in lollipops and for similar uses. They are replacing woodsticks and are finding new fields of utility because they have thequalities of flexibility, freedom from splintering, and uniformappearance and coloration.

In the prior art are disclosed various machines for making paper sticks,but they have suifered shortcomings which have reduced their actualoutput in practlce far below their theoretical output. For example, insome cases these prior machines have been very critical with respect tojamming and damage resulting from jamming so that any inadvertentincrease in the quantity of paper or thickness of paper being fed intothe machine jammed it up, necessitating disassembly. Whereas, in theprocess and machinery of this invention there is a large tolerance 1naccepting larger or thicker sections of paper web than intended. Forexample, in testing the machine as shown, sections of paper 5 to 6 timesthe intended length have been fed 1n, and the machine converted theminto paper sticks havmg 5 to 6 times the intended mass, without anyjamming or hesitation. The process and machine are also capable ofhandling lesser amounts of excess in-feed without jam- 5 ming. Thiscapability to handle extreme varations in quantity of in-feed providesreliable operation with minimum attention from the operator. The resultis a consistent high volume of production at low cost.

In the rolling and compacting of the paper sticks, the desiredrelationship is that the tightly rolling sticks remain perpendicular tothe direction of rolling as they are being compacted, so that they willrun true along the intended path without skewing or twisting. Specialarrangements have been included in some machines to catch 6 and tostraighten out skewed or bent paper sticks. Whenever a stick happened tobecome twisted too far out of line, then a jam up of the machine waslikely to occur. Also, it is noted that instability in steering limitsthe length of the paper stick which could be made. The machine describedherein provides very stable steering action so that the paper rod whichis rolled is enabled to be slightly more than five times the desiredstick length. Then this rod is cut and trimmed to produce 5 sticks ofequal length. The result is an actual output of 150,000 sticks per hour.

By virtue of the stability in steering and tolerance to avoid jam upsthis high output rate is provided with very little wastage of paperstock.

Because of stability of steering, the position of each rod after rollingis closely determined, and so it is not necessary to cut off arelatively large portion at each end to allow for any indeterminatenessin position. Moreover, the amount of paper stock consumed in trimming isminimized because the length of each rod being rolled is equal to fivetimes the final product, and the trimming only occurs at the ends of therod as it is being cut up into sticks.

Also, the large output rate of sticks produced as described isautomatically loaded in side-by-side parallel relationship into cartonsin readiness for shipping and dispensing.-

In accordance with the process of the present invention paper sticks areformed by separating a paper web into sections. Each section ispre-formed into a loosely curled roll and a pair of opposed, resilient,high friction surfaces are applied against opposite sides of the roll,and these surfaces are moved relative to each other in a directionperpendicular to the axis of each roll for rolling them between theresilient surfaces. The spacing between the opposed surfaces isdecreased for tightly compacting the rolls and the compacting rolls arepartially embedded into both resilient surfaces for steering the rollsto maintain their axes perpendicular to the direction of relative motionto form long paper rods. These rods are each cut into a multiplicity ofsticks.

In accordance with the packaging process the carton and paper sticksbeing packed therein are vibrated back and forth parallel with thedesired direction in which the sticks are intended to lie to produceparallel side-by-side stacking of the sticks.

Among the many advantages of the process and machinery of the presentinvention are those resulting from the fact that they enable theaccurate formation of long paper rods each of which can be cut into amultiplicity of paper sticks of the desired length. Thus, the productionoutput rate is high. Another advantage is that this process andmachinery is tolerant of large excesses in in-feed so as to avoid causesof jamming. Each paper roll is steered true along its desired path sothat they do not skew and jam up. Moreover, the present invention avoidsjamming by enabling the machinery to handle excess quantities of ofpaper stock even up to five times the normal amount without jamming.

In addition, the high volume of output is automatically packaged intoadjacent parallel relationship in a carton 5 in readiness for shippingand dispensing from the carton.

In the specification and in the accompanying drawings are described andshown the process and machinery for manufacturing and for packing papersticks embodying this invention, but it is to be understood that theseexamples of embodiments of the invention are not intended to beexhaustive nor limiting of the invention. These are examples of mypresently known best mode of carrying out the invention and are given inorder that others skilled in the art may fully understand the inventionand 5 the ways in which it may be applied to the conditions of aparticular use.

The various objects, aspects, and advantages of the present inventionwill be in part pointed out and in part will be apparent from thefollowing description of process and machinery embodying this invention,when considered in conjunction with the accompanying six sheets ofdrawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a system for manufacturing andfor packing paper sticks;

FIGURE 2 illustrates the use of a paper stick in a confection;

FIGURE 3 illustrates steps in the process of making the paper sticks;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged side elevational view of the stick manufacturingmachine;

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view of the machine of FIG- URE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged view illustrating a step in the process;

FIGURE 7 is a partial perspective view showing the method of cutting thelong paper rod into a multiplicity of sticks of the desired length andof trimming very short nubs off from each end of the rod;

FIGURE 8 is a partial sectional view taken along the line 8-8 in FIGURE7 and shown enlarged;

FIGURE 9 is a sectional view taken along the line 99 in FIGURE 7 andshowing the mounting of one of the knives;

FIGURES 10 and 11 illustrate input portions of the machine as shown inFIGURE 4;

FIGURE 12 is a perspective view illustrating the packing process andapparatus;

FIGURE 13 is a sectional view taken along the line 1313 of FIGURE 12;and

FIGURE 14 shows one of the packing containers and chutes.

As shown in FIGURE 1, a web of paper 1 is fed from a supply roll 2 intoa machine 4 which carries out the process of this invention for formingsections of the paper web into sticks and delivers them onto an outputconveyor 6. The paper sticks are then lifted by an upwardly inclinedconveyor 8 which includes a wide belt having spaced cleats on the beltso as to carry the sticks up to a vibrator conveyor 9 and thence intodrying apparatus 10 for removing any excess moisture from within theindividual sticks. After being dried the sticks are fed into anautomatic packing machine 11 carrying out the packing process of thisinvention.

The paper sticks which are formed are useful for a wide variety ofapplications, for example as shown in FIGURE 2, a paper stick 12 isbeing used as the handle for a confection 13. As discussed in theintroduction other typical uses of such paper sticks are for holdingcotton swabs or applicators, and the like.

As shown in FIGURE 3, in this process the paper web 1 is advancing inthe direction of the arrow and is initially cut along a zig-zag line 14leaving several short uncut connections 15 between the paper section 16and the web. The section 16 is then pulled ahead faster than the uncutweb so as to tear it loose along the out line 14. This separation ofeach section 16 from the web takes place in a suction air stream, aswill be explained in detail in connection with FIGURE 10 further below,and thus any small paper shreds which may be created in the cutting andtearing operations are disposed of by the air stream.

The paper section 16 is creased and crimped so that it is pre-formedinto a loosely curled roll 17 which is rolled and compacted into a paperrod 18. After further compacting and rolling a tightly compacted rod 20is formed, and small nubs 19 are trimmed off from each end of this rod,while it is being cut into five equal sticks 12. The nubs 19 are trimmedoff in a manner to allow them to drop free, as will be described indetail further below, and they are immediately taken away by vacuum,indicated by the legends in FIGURE 3. The sticks 12 are then conveyedaway, dried and packed.

The machine 4 is shown in greater detail in FIGURES 4 to 10 to whichattention is now invited in connection with the following description.The paper web 1 is fed into the machine 4 between a pair of idling guiderolls 21 and 22, the lower roll 22 being mounted upon the main frame 24of the machine. These rolls are covered with a tough layer ofwear-resistant material such as polyurethane. The upper roll 21 ismounted upon a hinged front frame section 25 which swings up andoutwardly, as indicated in FIGURE 4 by the dash and dot outline 25 toprovide convenient access for cleaning, inspection or servicing. Thisfront section 25 includes a downwardly extending leg 26 which is pivotedupon a hinge shaft down below the input end of the machine. By virtue ofthis hinge arrangement the front section 25 can be swung up andoutwardly so as to provide a relatively large access space around theoperating parts, as will be apparent from FIGURE 4. A pneumatic cylinder27 connected to the leg 26 and a corresponding cylinder on the oppositeside of the machine serve to lift the section 25 when desired by theoperator.

The web 1 is drawn into the machine by the cooperative action of a pinchroller 30 and a pair of contra-rotating rolls 28 and 29. The roll 29 isthe knife roll, which has a plurality of blades 34 mounted therein, andthe roll 28 has a corresponding number of recesses 35 into which therespective blades 34 enter when they are cutting the web passing betweenthe rolls 28 and 29. The rolls 28 and 29 are driven by synchronism, andthe pinch roll 30, which is an idler roll covered by a tough layer ofwearresistant material such as polyurethane, is mounted upon movablesupport means 31. This pinch roll is urged toward the roll 28 by springmeans 32, and the web 1 travels over this pinch roll and then it curvespartially around the roll 28, which is also covered by a layer of toughwear-resistant material such as polyurethane, having the recesses 35 cuttherein.

The blades 34 are shaped to produce the zigzag cuts 14 (FIG. 3), and therolls 28 and 29 are kept in synchronism as they rotate by a pair ofmeshing gears (not shown) of equal diameter mounted upon the respectiveshafts 36 and 37. When the frame section 25 is raised, these gearsbecome unmeshed, and they are re-engaged in their initial relationshipwhen the frame 25 is lowered back down into its operating position asshown in FIG- URE l0.

In order to strip the cut web ofi from the roll 29 and to directforwardly, a plurality of parallel guide elements 40 extend intocircumferential grooves 38 in the roll 29, and these guide elements alsoform bridge means extending across the open mouth of a vacuum chamber 41communicating through a passage 42 with a suction source duct 43. Theknife blades 34 have gaps therein aligned wtih the grooves 38 and withthe ends of the elements 40, and it is these gaps in the blades whichleave the uncut paper connections 15 (FIG. 3). By virture of the airflow down into the vacuum chamber 41 the rapidly advancing end 44 of theweb 1 is held down flush against the bridge elements 40 and is thusprevented from fluttering up out of the desired path in spite of itsfast forward movement.

The downstream ends of the guide elements 40 are curved and rest closelyadjacent to the surface of a resilient coated crimp anvil roll 46,cooperating with a steel crimp roll 47, which has a multi-pointed starshape as seen in cross section in FIG. 10 formed by a plurality oflongitudinally extending V-shaped ridges. These V- shaped ridges pressthe leading end of the paper web firmly against the rubber layer 48 soas to crimp the paper into a plurality of parallel creases causing thepaper to tend to curl. The roll 46 has a shaft 49, and it is driven at aperipheral speed which extends the peripheral speed of the draw rolls 28and 29. Thus, as soon as the leading end of the web is engaged betweenthe crimping rolls 46 and 47, the web is placed under tension and theleading section 16 of the web is torn loose along the line of zig-zagcuts 14 (FIG. 3).

FIGURE 10 shows the paper section 16 being torn loose from the leadingend 44 of the web. The separation occurs near the center of the guideelements 40 where they span over the vacuum chamber 41, and thus anysmall shreds of paper which may occur are sucked down into the duct 43so as to be disposed of.

In order to provide this tension separation as described occurring overthe vacuum chamber 41, the width W of the paper section 16 (FIG. 1) asmeasured in the direction of travel is less than the distance of papertravel from the region of engagement between the rolls 28 and 29 to theregion of engagement between the crimp rolls 46 and 47. In this example,the width W of each paper section 16 is only /3 of the paper travel fromthe rolls 28 and 29 to the rolls 46 and 47. Also, the peripheral speedof the roll 46 is significantly greater than the peripheral speed of theknife roll 29, so as to produce a rapid separation along the zig-zag cutline 14 (FIG. 3) while this out line is travelling over the bridgeelements 40. It is this differential in speed which accelerates theleading paper section 16 for tearing it loose from the travelling web.As an example, it is noted that in this machine the ratio of theperipheral speed of the resilient crimp roll 46 to the peripheral speedof the knife roll 29 is approximately 3 to 2, but other ratios may beused so long as the periphery of the roll 46 is travelling at asufficiently greater rate to produce the tearing separation While thecut line 24 is travelling over the guide elements 40.

After the paper section 16 has been crimped by the action of theV-shaped ridges in pressing the paper against the rubber layer 48, itclings to the roll 47 and is carried around this roll near to a largerevolving drum 50 having a resilient, high friction layer 51 thereon.There is a sufiicient clearance between the crimped paper on the roll 47and the surface layer 51 of the revolving drum 50 to assure that thedrum does not touch the paper until after the paper has been strippedoff from the roll 47.

To strip the crimped, loosely curled roll 17 off from the roll 47, thereare a plurality of stripper blades 52 having their curved lower endsfitting into circumferential grooves in the roll 47. Thus, the looselycurled roll 17 is fed into a converging channel 54 defined between theperiphery of the drum and the resilient surface 55 of a concave shoe 53.The tight rolling and compacting of the paper roll is described indetail further below.

As shown in FIGURE 5, the drive mechanism for the machine 4 includes anelectric motor and adjustable speed transmission unit 56 which isconnected by a sprocket and chain 57 to an electro-magnetic clutch andelectromagnetic brake unit 58 coupled to a main drive shaft 59. Thechain 57 and clutch-brake unit 58 are located on the far side of themachine as seen in FIGURE 5, and the drive shaft 59 extends out to thenear side of the machine, as seen in FIGURE 4. Secured to the main shaft59 is a sprocket for driving a heavy chain 60 (FIG. 4) engaging a largesprocket 61, which in turn drives a smaller sprocket 62 and a heavychain 63 engaging a large sprocket 64 on the drum shaft 65 for revolvingthe drum 50 (FIG. 5). The drum 50 is revolved at a peripheral speedwhich exceeds the peripheral speeds of the crimp rolls 46 and 47. Themain drive shaft 59 also includes a sprocket engaging chain 66 whichserves to drive a sprocket on the shaft 49 of the crimp roll 46 (FIGS. 5and In order to drive the contra-rotating rolls 28 and 29 at a slowerperipheral speed than the crimp rolls, there is a smaller sprocket onthe shaft 49 which drives a chain 67 engaging a larger sprocket on theshaft 37 of the knife roll 29.

To keep the periphery of the drum 50 free from paper fibers or flecks ofpaper, there is a stiff bristled brush 70 (FIGS. 4 and 5) which isrotated in a direction counter to the drum surface by means of the chain66 passing over a sprocket 71 on the brush shaft. A U-shaped vacuumhousing 72 (FIG. 5) surrounds this brush 70 and has an open mouthclosely adjacent to the drum surface 51. A suction source duct 73 isconnected to the bottom of this U-shaped suction housing and serves todraw away any paper fibers or flecks which have been loosened from thedrum 50 by action of the contra-rotating brush 70.

For aiding in compacting and bonding the paper rolls being formed, thesurface of the drum 50 is moistened by a water-transfer roller 75rotating partially submerged in a water supply trough 76. Excess wateris stripped off from the drum surface by a flexible stripper blade 77 sothat the drum surface remains moist. This moisture has the effect ofsoftening the paper being rolled and compacted. Also, a bonding of therolled paper is produced as a combined result of the moisture, pressureand workheating which occurs during the rolling process acting upon theconstituents of the paper stock which includes sizing materialcontaining starch.

In FIGURE 5, the dotted lines 78 show the line of separation between themain frame 24 and the end of the hinged front frame section 25. A toggleclamp 87 (FIG. 4) looks the frame section 25 down in place duringoperation. When the frame section 25 is raised, the web 1 remainsconveniently gripped between the pinch roll 30 and the recessed roll 28,and the web separates along the out line 14 which is over the guideelements 40. The suction flow into the chamber 41 is shut off duringcleaning, inspection or servicing, and it is turned on before themachine is started again. This suction air flow guides the leading end44 of the web so as to re-thread it into the bite of the crimp rolls 46and 47 while the machine is jogged ahead. As soon as the crimp rollshave gripped the leading end of the web, the machine can be turned up toits full speed of 500 of the sections 16 per minute, which produces2,500 of the paper sticks 12 per minute. In this particular example thewidth W is 4 inches so that the linear speed of the web 1 is 167 feetper minute. I believe that this machine is capable of higher speeds, butthere has been no occasion for me to run it at higher speed.

Inviting attention again to FIGURE 10 it is noted that the looselycurled roll 17 enters the channel space 54 which extends around thedrum. This channel space 54 is defined on the inside by the resilient,high friction layer 51 of rubber on the drum and by a correspondingresilient, high friction layer 55 of rubber, which is supported by asequence of concave frame sections or shoes 53, 80, 81 and 82 etxendingaround a major portion of the periphery of the drum. The first concaveframe member 53 is included as part of the front frame section 25. Thesecond concave frame section 80 is mounted upon a hinge pivot shaft 83,and the third and fourth concave frame sections 81 and 82 are bothmounted upon a common hinge pivot shaft 84, the shafts 83 and 84 beingsecured to the main frame 24 by supports 85.

When it is desired to inspect or service the drum or the frame shells80, 81 or 82, or in the event a paper jam up should occur, then theseshells can be swung open about the respective hinge pivots 83 and 84, asindicated by dash and dotted outlines at 80', 8-1 and 82'. They areswung outwardly by actuating pneumatic cylinders 86, and when they areclosed in their normal operating positions they are secured in place bymeans of toggle clamps 87 and screw clamps 88. The spacing between therubber layers 51 and 55 is determined by spacer blocks (not shown) whichare inserted adjacent to the respective clamps 87 and 88. In order toprovide accurate lateral alignment of the shells 53, 80, 81, and 82 withthe main frame 24, these spacer blocks seat against 45 sloping surfaces.Also, the positions of the pivot shafts 83 and 84 can be adjusted bymoving the supports 85, as indicated in FIGURE 4 by the stop screws andlock nuts adjacent to the respective bases of the supports 85.

In order to convert the loosely convoluted roll 17 into a tightly rolledpaper rod 18 and then to compact it further into the compacted paper rod20, the resilient, high friction layer 55 converges toward theresilient, high friction layer 51 in the direction of drum rotation sothat the channel 54 becomes progressively narrower. An initialtightening of the roll is produced beneath the layer 55 on the shell 53,which converges toward the drum as shown in FIGURE 10. Then a slightmomentary relief in the tightening occurs, as indicated in FIGURES and11, when the paper roll 17 transfers across the separation 78 and entersbeneath the shell 80. The initial spacing of the channel 54 near thestrippers 52 is approximately of an inch, and the final spacing near theknives 90 (FIGS. 7, 8, and 9) is approximately of an inch, to produce astick 12 having a diameter of of an inch.

As the rods 18 are being compacted, as shown in FIGURE 6, they areeffectively steered by the powerful frictional engagement with theopposed resilient rubber layers 51 and 55 each of which has a thicknessgreater than the diameter of the finally compacted rod 20 which isproduced. The rod being compactedembeds itself slightly in both surfaces51 and 55 as indicated by the indentations 79. This produces asubstantial area of firm rolling friction contact on both sides of thecompacting rod 18 and so this embedded frictional contact steers the rodalong a true path by preventing slippage. Moreover, this resilienceaccommodates overfeeding up to 5 to 6 times the intended amount withoutjamming.

As shown in FIGURE 7 there are six uniformly spaced knives 90 mountedupon movable arms 91 and which are urged toward their operativepositions by means of springs 92 held by anchoring members 93. The nubs19 which are trimmed off are allowed to fall free so that they are drawninto suction chambers 94 and are removed by ducts 95 connected to avacuum source, such as a suction blower. The two outer knife holders 97are held by bolts 98 and slope away from the respective outer knives 90as shown in FIGURES 7 and 8 to allow the nubs 19 to drop away freely.Between the knives 90 the resilient rubber layer 55 is continued, asshown in FIG- URE 7, for rolling and steering the sticks 12 being cut,indicated in FIGURE 8.

In the event an over feed of paper should occur, resulting in an oversize rod 20, then the spring means 92 yield to allow the resultingsticks to pass through the cutting region without jamming. Stops (notshown) prevent the knife blades 90 from touching the drum surface 51.

As the cut sticks 12 are discharged from the machine 4, a deflector 96(FIGURE 9) guides them down onto a moving belt 99 of the deliveryconveyor 6. This belt 99 is driven by a chain 100 (FIGURE 4) and bydrive means 101. The cut sticks travel up the inclined belt 8 and alongthe conveyor 9 onto the belt 102 of a dielectric drier unit 10. A seriesof parallel conductive bars 103 extend beneath the belt 102, and thesebars 103 are energized by high frequency alternating voltage to driveoff the moisture from within the sticks. This moisture is drawn offthrough a duct 104.

So far as I am aware, the positioning of the grill bars 103 beneath theconveyor belt 102 is novel. The reason for doing this is to prevent thepiles of sticks on the belt 102 from jamming up against bars 103. Thehigh frequency dielectric drier which energizes these bars is acommercially available unit. The belt 102 is chosen to exhibit lowdielectric losses at the frequency of operation, for example this beltis formed of glass cloth.

As'shown in FIGURES l and 12 the dried sticks 12 are transferred fromthe drier belt 102 onto a linear vibratory conveyor 106 including aplurality of diverging channel ways 107 which have their open dischargeends positioned above a carton 108 into which the sticks 12 are to beloaded. This carton is supported upon a plate 109 and is divided up by aseries of adjacent parallel, rectangular metal tubes 110 which extenddown into the carton to the bottom to partition it into numerousseparate compartments 114. The carton is long and narrow, and it isdesired to package the sticks transversely of the carton as appears inFIGURES 13 and 14.

At their upper ends the metal partitions 110 are fastened to a rigidframework 111 which is attached to a stiff beam 115. A powerfulelectromagnetic vibrator unit 116 has its reciprocating plunger 117connected to the beam 115, and it violently vibrates the partition tubesback and forth in a direction transversely of the carton 108. Thepartitions 110 fit snugly within the carton so that the carton iscaptured and is forced to vibrate as a unit with the tubes 110, itslower end sliding on the plate 109.

In this process the carton 108 and the paper sticks 12 being packedtherein are vibrated back and forth parallel with the desired directionin which the sticks are intended to lie to produce parallel side-by-sidepacking of the sticks. The sticks tumble down into the respectivecompartments 114 which have a dimension transversely of the carton 108just slightly larger than the length of the sticks 12, as seen in FIGURE13, but their other dimension is too narrow for the sticks to lie in adirection longitudinally of the carton. FIGURE 14 illustrates therelationship of the partitions 110 forming compartments each havingtheir larger dimensions transverse of the carton. In order to cause allof the sticks to lie parallel side by side as they tumble at the rate of2,500 sticks per minute into the carton, the amplitude of vibration islarge and the resulting agitation is intense at 60 cycles per second.

The vibrator 116 is mounted on springs 118 with retainer elements 119projecting down into slots 120 in blocks 121 mounted upon a chassis 126.

When the carton 108 is full, a cylinder 124 having a rod 125 connectedto the chassis 126 is actuated to slide the whole chassis toward theforeground into the position indicated at 109' as viewed in FIGURE 12.The chassis 126 slides upon fixed tracks 127 and 128. This chassismovement brings an empty carton 108 and the associated vibratorapparatus 110, 111, 115, 116 and 117 into position beneath the dischargeends of the conveyor channel ways 107. The full carton, which is nowabove the position 109, is ready to be removed. A latch 112 isdisengaged from a hingle member 113, allowing the support plate 109 toswing down. The carton is pulled down off from the partitions 110 andthe parallel sticks all remain packed in the carton because the bottomof the compartments 114 are open. An empty carton is slipped up aroundthe partitions 110, and the support plate 109 is then latched up inplace in readiness for the chassis to be shifted back to its position asshown when the next carton is full.

In order to provide the desired amplitude of vibration all of thevibrating parts 110, 111 and 115 are made light but rigid, in thisexample being made of aluminum. The beam 115 and framework 111 preventsignificant deflection under the intense vibration and assure that allof the compartments 114 are being vibrated with equally large amplitude.

From the foregoing it will be understood that the process and machineryfor making and packaging paper sticks embodying the present invention asdescribed above are well suited to provide the advantages set forth. Theterms and expressions which I have employed are used in a descriptiveand not a limiting sense, and I have not intention of excludingequivalents of the invention described and claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. The process of forming paper sticks by tightly rolling and compactingsections of a paper web comprising the steps of pre-forming each sectionof the paper web into a loosely curled roll; applying a pair of opposed,resilient, high friction surfaces against opposite sides of the rolls;moving said surfaces relative to each other in a direction perpendicularto the axes of said rolls for rolling them therebetween; decreasing thespacing between said opposed surfaces for tightly compacting said rollsand for steering the rolls to maintain their axes perpendicular to thedirection of relative motion to form long paper rods; and cutting eachof said paper rods into a multiplicity of sticks.

2. The process of forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 1, in whichthe paper rods being compacted are partially embedded on both sides ofthe rod into the opposed, resilient, high friction surfaces.

3. The process of forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 1, in whichone of said opposed, resilient high friction surfaces is continuouslyrevolved, and moisture is applied to said one surface prior to theapplication of said one surface against the loosely curled rolls.

4. The process of forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 3, includingthe steps of drying and packing the sticks in a continuous operation.

5. The process of forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 1, in whichthe paper Web is advanced along a path, a section to be separated fromthe leading end of the Web is defined by creating a partially cut tearline extending transversely of the web, said section is accelerated andtorn loose from the advancing web along said tear line to form aseparate section, and said separate section is crimped to be prc-formedinto a loosely curled roll.

6. The process of forming paper sticks as claimed in claim in which theleading end of the web after said section has been torn loose is guidedby a suction air flow which also serves to draw away any shreds of paperwhich may become loose while said section is being torn loose along saidtear line.

7. The process of forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 6 in whichsaid section is accelerated as it is being pre-formed into said looselycurled roll.

8. The process of forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 1 in whichsaid long paper rods are rolled between said pair of opposed resilienthigh-friction surfaces as they are being cut into a multiplicity ofsticks.

9. The process of forming, drying and packaging paper sticks as claimedin claim 4 and wherein the sticks are dried while continuously moving byhigh frequency alternating voltage applied from beneath the sticks todrive off the moisture.

10. In a machine for forming paper sticks by tightly rolling andcompacting sections of paper web, a drum arranged to rotate about itsaxis, said drum having a surface coated with a first resilient, tough,rubber-like layer, and a shell frame structure disposed around theperiphery of the drum having its inner surface coated with a secondresilient, tough, rubber-like layer converging with the firstrubber-like layer in the direction of rotation of the drum.

11. In a machine for forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 10, saidfirst and second resilient, tough, rubberlike layers defining a channelextending partially around said drum for tightly rolling and compactinglong paper rods, and said shell frame including a plurality of uniformlyspaced knives converging toward said first surface near the dischargeend of said channel for cutting each of said rods into a multiplicity ofsticks.

12. In a machine for forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 11, saidshell frame including a resilient, tough, rubber-like, concave layerdisposed between said knives for frictionally rolling said rods as theyare being cut into sticks.

13. In a machine for forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 12,movable mounting means supporting said knives, and spring means urgingsaid knives toward said first resilient layer for accommodating thecutting of oversize rods.

14. -=In a machine for forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 12, saidshell frame defining clearance spaces adjacent to the outside of the twoouter knives, a suction chamber communicating with each of saidclearance spaces, and a vacuum duct for removing the nubs cut from theopposite ends of said rods as the sticks are being cut.

15. In a machine for forming paper sticks as claimed in claim 10, saidshell frame structure including a plurality of arcuate frame membershinged to swing away from the drum, clamp means for securing saidarcuate members in operating position near said drum, and lift means forswinging said arcuate members away from the drum for cleaning andservicing of the machine.

16. A machine for forming paper sticks by tightly rolling and compactinga section of paper web comprising means for advancing the paper web at apredetermined speed, means for creating a partially cut tear lineextending across the web to define a paper section, a pair of opposedcrimping rolls, drive means for rotating said crimping rolls at a higherperipheral speed than the speed of advancement of said Web, guide meansincluding a vacuum chamber having an open mouth and a plurality of guideelements spanning across said open mouth for guiding the leading end ofthe web toward the bite of said crimping rolls for tearing said papersection loose from the advancing web along said tear line and forpreforming said paper section into a loosely curled roll, a revolvingdrum, and a shell structure disposed about said drum for tightly rollingand compacting said roll.

17. A machine as claimed in claim 16 in which said means for creating apartially cut tear line includes a knife roll having a plurality ofcircumferential grooves therein and said guide elements extend into saidgrooves.

18. A machine as claimed in claim 17 in which said knife roll includes aplurality of blades and a recessed roll opposed to said knife roll, andsaid recessed roll and one of said crimp roll being mounted upon ahinged front section of the machine adapted to be swung up and outwardlyfor inspection and servicing.

19. A machine as claimed in claim 16 including means for cleaning saiddrum as it revolves, means for moistening said drum and for removingexcess water before contact with the loosely curled paper sections, andhigh frequency voltage drying means for drying said sticks.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,730,675 10/ 1929 Meyer 9312,308,538 l/l943 Decker 931 2,406,033 8/ 1946 Perkins 93l 2,699,098 1/1955 Lyons 93-1 3,155,016 11/1964 Pellicone et al 93-1 WILLIAM S.LAWSON, Primary Examiner. I

